Let’s work backwards from a perfectly fueled ride. You wake up the morning after your ride and your legs have that tightness associated with a solid effort the previous day but they’re not destroyed. You’re a bit hungrier than normal but not starving and you know you’ll make smart food choices today. You slept well, sure you could have stayed in bed an extra hour, but that will need to wait till next weekend. You know you’re going to drink a tall glass of water, hit the coffee pot and do some stretching or foam rolling before breakfast and the start of your day. Your mood is slightly cheerier than normal. Congratulate yourself, you nailed your nutrition yesterday!

If you’re reading this, chances are you are not a Cat 1 racer, pro rider, or even trying to earn QOMs on Strava, well, a few QOMs would be nice. You’re a working parent (of either kids or dogs or both) and you love to ride your bike, have a good time, and feel strong on and off the bike. You think you could probably feel stronger on the bike but you’re not quite sure what’s missing other than simply riding more. It could be your nutrition is out of balance.

I have countless conversations with clients and friends alike who feel like they are completely mystified as to how best to fuel themselves while out riding. Nutrition quickly becomes a muddy topic as there are many variables: personal preferences, food intolerances, the intensity and type of activity you’re performing, and your body's specific adaptations. I like to think of nutrition in two different categories:

What the current science says
What works for you

The reality is nutrition science is constantly changing, is often done on a small sample size, and often only performed on white males between the ages of 25-40. It’s also important to consider that most nutrition research is conducted to optimize top level performance, not necessarily your after work ride with your buddies to clear your head, or your weekend ride to go check out a new trail. I have read the research, done the math, played with numbers, and for me personally, I continually go back to a few bullet points I’d like to share with you.

Hydration is key!
A general rule is 1 bottle (12-16oz) of water per hour. If you are going to be out for more than the 60-90 min window, you should have some form of electrolyte in your bottles. Osmo, Skratch, and LTMT are my favorite. Use common sense when it comes to hydration. The hotter out it is, the more you should be drinking. If you leave salt stains on your jerseys or helmet, you are a salty sweater which means you definitely want to include salts in your water!

2. You should never finish a ride starving!

I’ve said this before, but if you walk into the house and immediately devour a bag of chips, half the pickle jar, and a whole sleeve of cookies, guess what? You didn’t eat enough on your ride and your recovery is going to suffer. Try to never finish a ride starving, even if that means you eat half a bar 30 min before you reach home or the trail head.

**3. You do not need to take in calories for rides that are less than 60-75 minutes.**

BUT, it depends on what else you’ve eaten and how recently. After 75 minutes of continuous exercise, your body has used up the majority of its glycogen stores, and you want to replace that glycogen with food! If you are out for fewer than 75 minutes, as long as you’ve eaten a good meal within 2-3 hrs of your activity you do not need to eat during your ride. Make sure you’re on top of your hydration and eat a well balanced meal within 30 min after your ride and you’re good to go. If you’re heading out for an afternoon ride between 3 or 5pm, and you haven’t eaten since lunch, you need to eat some food! Ideally eat at least 30 min before you hop on your bike, but 1-2 hours is preferable. Shoot for 150-300 calories. Mostly carbs and some protein and a little fat. This could look like half a peanut butter sandwich, a piece of fruit with a small handful of nuts, a tortilla with hummus, plain yogurt with fruit, or a bar (bought or homemade) are all great options. Choosing to not fuel your afternoon ride is what will most likely leave you stumbling home and raiding the pantry. Even when it’s a “short” 1-2hr after work ride keep the end goal in mind. You want to wake up the next day and feel great! You want to have energy to play with the kids, be productive at work, and get the dog out. The goal of your ride should not be to burn a bunch of calories to leave you famished for dinner. Fuel your ride to feel stronger today, tomorrow, and the next day!

4. Prioritize carbohydrates first, fats and proteins second.

Carbs are your body's primary fuel source when exercising. 10% your total energy comes from protein, so if you are going to be out for over 90 minutes, you want your foods to have some protein, but it doesn’t need to be the focal point. What are good sources of carbs to eat while out riding? Food! Real food as much as possible. This is where personal preference comes into play, along with the intensity of your ride. The more intense your ride, the more you are going to want to stick to simple fast digesting carbs like gummy candies or chews. Here are a few suggestions for a variety of palettes:

Rice cakes with honey
Banana, orange, or dates
Gummy candy
Pop-tarts
Pretzels
Tortilla with jam and or honey
Baked potato (sweet or regular) with salt

5. Eat 30-60g of Carbs per hour for rides 2hrs or more.

OK, we need to get into numbers at some point so here it is. Shoot for 30-60g of carbohydrate per hour for all rides longer than 2 hrs. The prevailing science says people can absorb 1g of carb/minute. This means if you are consuming more than 60g of carbohydrate per hour you’re likely going to suffer from GI distress. Hence, it’s important to stay on top of your nutrition from the start if you know you’ll be out for 2+ hrs.

Read nutrition labels to get an idea of the grams of carbs in your food. I love the way European packaging says “Energy” instead of carbohydrates. Those carbs are your “on bike” energy! Don’t worry about the grams of fat and protein as long as the food is primarily carbohydrate. All of the above examples provide an excellent source of carbohydrates, and you have a range of real foods to packaged. If you are going to be out longer than 2 hrs turn to more complex foods such as bars, a sandwich, or peanut butter filled pretzels. These will keep you going for longer compared to burning through simple carbohydrates like rice cakes and gummy candies.

The bigger, longer rides are where people really tend to fall apart. It’s important to stay on top of both your hydration and nutrition early for any effort of more than 2 hrs. I use the rule of thumb, eat before you’re hungry, drink before you’re thirsty.

At the end of the day, how you feel is much more important than what the science says. Take notes and experiment. Most people I know are not eating enough throughout the day or on their ride and then you wonder why you are sore, lack energy, or feel like you can’t get out of bed. I am certainly not perfect and made this mistake yesterday! I didn’t eat enough on my ride, partially because it was all uphill and the one time I did eat I almost choked because eating and breathing at the same time is hard! I woke up in them middle of the night hungry, and my recovery and energy the next day suffered simply from not taking in enough calories while riding.

Remember to begin with the end in mind. How do you want to feel tomorrow morning when you wake up after your ride today? Want to dial in your nutrition even more? Join me for the September MTB Wellness Challenge!